The 13th Annual World Islamic Banking Conference will be held under the official patronage of Shaikh Khalifa Bin Salman Al Khalifa, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Bahrain, at the Gulf International Convention Centre on 9 – 11 December 2006. Saudi Arabia’s National Commercial Bank, Bahrain’s Kuwait Finance House, Unicorn Investment Bank, and Kuwait’s Adeem Investment Company are Platinum Partners of the prestigious industry event, which this year is being held under the theme of ‘Driving Growth & Delivering on Market Expectations through Product Innovation & Service Quality’.

Now in its 13th year, The World Islamic Banking Conference (WIBC) has firmly established itself as the largest and the most significant gathering of Islamic banking & finance industry leaders anywhere in the world. For more than a decade WIBC has tracked the developments & shaped the trends in the global industry, providing the highest profile platform for senior executives to engage the key issues & to action strategies that capitalise on emerging opportunities.

This year’s conference is supported by the Central Bank of Bahrain and features a host of exciting and value-added highlights that set it apart from all other conferences. These include the Leaders & Winning Strategies Session featuring international strategy guru Tom Peters, regional leaders and CEOs to address cross-industry perspectives; the original research insights of the WIBC Competitiveness Report conducted in collaboration with McKinsey & Company; the Shari’ah Open Forum with a panel of Shari’ah experts; and the Breakout Summits focusing on the Retail, and the Corporate & Investment Banking segments.

Sheikh Abdulla Bahamadan, NCB Chairman stated that the bank’s Platinum Partnership with WIBC is based on two important concerns which were first, the bank’s expansion in Islamic banking considering it is one of the main strategic goals of NCB. The second is that the Islamic banking sector is one of the fastest growing sectors in the banking industry. In addition, Abdulkareem Abu AlNasr, CEO of NCB said that “NCB encourages and supports important economic events and that WIBC occupies a special place in the international and regional markets for Islamic banking & finance.”

The National Commercial Bank (NCB), headquartered in Jeddah, has established its current financial strength and leadership in the Saudi and Middle East markets. NCB is committed to delivering better service to its customers by leveraging the advancements provided by technology.

WIBC delegates will engage in a stimulating debate on major issues with a distinguished faculty of speakers and panelists, including leaders of international and regional institutions through highly interactive conference sessions moderated by Dina Salem, Program Editor & Presenter of Al Arabiya News Channel.

Abdulhakeem Alkhayyat, General Manager, Kuwait Finance House, Bahrain, said: “KFH-Bahrain is proud to be a Platinum Partner of the 13th Annual World Islamic Banking Conference, which creates a unique forum bringing together innovators and leaders from across the Islamic banking and finance industry. Year after year, this event helps to underscore the significant advancements and progress that continue to shape the industry as well as the vast opportunities that lie ahead as leading industry players continue to conceptualise, develop and introduce new and innovative ways to meet strong demand for Islamic financial products, services and methods of financing.”

Kuwait Finance House, Bahrain is a leading provider of Islamic commercial and investment banking services.